December 18

Late Season Bow Hunting ... I Made That Up

I was finally back in the tree today. It was great to be out in the woods with my bow again. Matt, it¹s a nickname, shoots them fast and straight. It makes me look good. Matt the bow, I mean. When I¹m hunting it¹s apart of me.

Ninety percent of bow hunting is the bow. (I made that up.) Late season  bow hunting is far different from hunting in the fall. It¹s the varsity. And like varsity teams everywhere, not everyone excels. In fact, hardly anyone who goes late season bow hunting once, goes again that season.

It¹s the cold, it¹s the wind, it¹s the gray, gloomy overcast that shrouds the forest. Walking out of a cold dark forest after the hunt in late season is a lonely and sometimes frightening experience. Your mind runs wild. You begin to think of scary things. There really isn¹t such things as vampires who hide in the dark forest shadows is there? What was that? Or,how hungry do bears get in late season? Or, I wonder if she made meatloaf for supper ... again? Anyway, ten percent of late season bow hunters are hardy,tough guys. The other ninety percent are crazy. (I made that up.) Though, if itwere true, I¹d fall into the latter category.

It was cold, indeed, today. In fact, a breeze that nips my nose in the fall carries a blade this time of year and it know how to cut with it.

The deer were few and far between. The ones I did see,does and fawns and two spike bucks, were as spooky as your ex-wife¹s lawyer.That¹s because they have been shot at with big booming rifles for three weeks straight. The deer I mean. As a consequence the deer are suffering from a psychological problems and hide from hunters. (I didn¹t make that up but the Wisconsin DNR used it as an excuse for low deer harvest numbers several years ago.) I¹m looking for bigger and better bucks this late season. Well, at leastI have good intentions. That¹s part of late season bow hunting, good intentions in spite of ten below temperature and a 25 m.p.h. breeze. In fact, 90% of late season bow  hunting is good intentions.(I made that up.)